El Secuestro de Benito

Gr 3-5-Diaz Eterovic is well known by adult readers in Chile as the creator of a series of detective novels featuring a private eye named Heredia. At the request of his own children, the author has written a book for younger readers featuring the same character. Set in Santiago, this story pairs Heredia up with a young sidekick named Rold n. The boy lives in the detective's apartment building and out of curiosity begins to drop by his office, asking questions and borrowing books. He soon becomes embroiled in a case involving a kidnapped dog. Although Rold n at first tries to investigate on his own, he quickly realizes that he needs the help of an expert. Together, the pair hatch a plot to catch the crook and rescue the dog. This story is told in a straightforward manner with several plot twists and turns. The engaging, pastel illustrations show the main characters interacting with one another as well as with a few of the incidental characters, such as the detective's white cat and the unfortunate, kidnapped dog. An appropriate selection for libraries and bookstores. Maria Otero-Boisvert, ""Criticas""